There are so many good books about green living out there that I stopped picking up every one I see years ago. I have my favorites that I consider classics, Debra Lynn Dadd’s original Nontoxic and Natural (I’ll talk more about her another time) among others. Now I've added a new one to my list of classics. I picked up Renee Loux’s Easy Green Living: The Ultimate Guide to Simple, Eco-Friendly Choices for You and Your Home primarily because her book on raw foods, Living Cuisine: The Art and Spirit of Raw Foods is on my cookbook shelf. Honestly, I’ve never seen her show so I didn’t realize she was also a natural living expert.I'm glad I picked it up, as it is a book that anyone interested in starting or furthering a natural lifestyle should own. It is priceless as a resource book. It’s particularly valuable because the information isn’t likely to become obsolete as some books in this genre do. This is because she doesn’t just rely on identifying safe brand names and products in the market place. She also gives detailed lists of chemicals to avoid and make it yourself alternatives.She lists the dangers of the chemicals or contaminants in each area, everything from laundry detergents to bedding. She explains very clearly what to look for, what to avoid, and what the alternatives are. You can probably guess from my writing I particularly enjoy the new homemade formulas she offers to add to my repertoire.I highly recommend this book for those starting on the path to discovering natural health as well as seasoned natural health gurus.

We've finally progressed to a safe, efficient light bulb that's generally available. It's been known for years that the Light Emiting Diode (LED) bulbs were the most efficient, but it's taken a while to create them so they can provide more than a couple of watts of light. Incandescent bulbs use large amounts of energy in resources, manufacture and use; 90% of their energy use is from the heat they generate. Incandescents use all this energy and they only last about six months. Compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFL's) have their own problems. We've started using them in place of incandescents because they use less resources, and they last about 8X longer than incandescent light bulbs. Unfortunately they also contain small (very small) amounts of mercury requiring them to be disposed of as hazardous waste. There is also concern about CFL's because they're causing allergic reactions in a small percentage of the population. The uncovered spiral versions appear to be the most problematic. Individuals with lupus seem to be particularly sensitive.LED's have none of these problems. Then there's their longevity. At 8 hours of use a day one bulb can last as long as 34 years! Another interesting feature is that they don't tend to attract bugs like others do because of their color spectrum. LED's are actually not bulbs at all, but little semi-conductors. They never actually "burn out", but will gradually lose their lumen production in their later years.

Natural Jersey

NaturalJersey.com was created in order to have a place on the web where we can all share the great green & natural health resources in NJ. I hope you find it a never ending resource when you're looking for health-minded local businesses.

Please let me know if you have any ideas to make this site even better! - Su

Support Natural Jersey

I've been working on this site for a while now and I've come to realize many similar sites require businesses to pay in order to be listed on their site.

Natural Jersey.com will list any appropriate New Jersey resource for free. Otherwise, how could it be a thorough resource for you?

Since there are no initial listing fees most of the work is done for free; any donations to enable me to spend more time on the site are appreciated. But wait, you don't need to donate at all. You can support the site in other ways.

One way is simply to use the site, and tell your friends about it. Come back often, as I'm constantly adding and updating the information.

Another important way is to be sure to tell any businesses you visit as a result of seeing them here that you found them on Natural Jersey.

Lastly, you can support Natural Jersey by making any purchases you would be doing anyway through the links on the site. Hey, if you're ordering from Amazon anyway, why not support New Jersey businesses in the process. When you order through these links a small percentage comes back to me. That means I can spend more time publicizing New Jersey's health-minded businesses, they get more business, and we've stimulated the local economy. Yay! It's a win-win.

I appreciate all the great feedback I've been getting on my efforts. Thank you all for your support! Questions/comments/to be listed e-mail me NaturalJersey@gmail.com- Su